Did the FBI have an obligation to notify targets of attempted hacks?

The Associated Press released a bombshell story on Sunday where they reported that nearly 80 people had been targeted by Fancy Bear, a Russian government-aligned cyberespionage group. These people had not been notified by the FBI they had been targeted. In fact, of everyone interviewed by AP, only two had been notified by the FBI. Fancy Bear was trying to steal passwords to personal Gmail accounts of U.S. officials. The attempted hacks were discovered by Secureworks in 2016, who, upon finding out what Fancy Bear was doing, notified the authorities. The lack of notification by the FBI to the U.S. individuals makes one ask a question. Did the FBI have an obligation to tell the targets about the attempted hacks?

PBS NewsHour covering the AP’s story on the FBI not informing officials that they were targeted:

The Issue

Did the FBI have an obligation to notify the targets of the attempted hacks? Should the FBI have told them to help ensure their safety? Or, was the FBI investigating a crime and needed to keep it secret?

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